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Primary season has already started in several states and the midterm elections are nearly seven months away. States like Illinois and Texas already had their primaries which have set up mostly one-sided races. The Illinois governor’s race is the one exception which looks like it will go down to the wire. Incumbent governor Pat Quinn is vulnerable, but several missteps by Republican Bruce Rauner have kept the race close. If Pat Quinn can successfully paint Rauner as an extremist like he did Bill Brady, Quinn could squeak out a narrow victory in November.

Many more consequential primaries will soon follow. When incumbent U.S. Senator from Georgia, Saxby Chambliss, announced his retirement, few predicted that the Democrats would have a shot at winning in Georgia. Georgia is a fairly conservative state, slightly more conservative then Indiana. However, some controversial candidates on the Republican side and the fact that Michelle Nunn is running, has made this race a close one. Michelle Nunn is the daughter of former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn. Republicans in Georgia are concerned that they could repeat what happened in Indiana and Missouri last election and blow a winnable senate seat.

Kentucky is another close one to watch. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is facing a tough challenge from Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes. Senator Mitch McConnell has had low approval ratings in his home state and is facing a tough general election challenge. Alison Lundergan Grimes has consistently been polling close and even leading Senator McConnell in recent polls. Both Georgia and Kentucky will be close and interesting ones to watch.

I will continue to give updates as we get closer to the general election. Keep in mind that politics moves at a different speed than everything else and will change between now and Election Day. Polling will change in each race up until Election Day. The general rule to follow is, the closer we are to the election, the more accurate the polling will be; so stay tuned.